A Return Without Her
by leilani.d
Summary: Katniss Everdeen is killed in the 74th Hunger Games. Peeta Mellark is now the lone victor. Here is his life back in District 12 without the love of his life.
1. Chapter 1: Arrival in District 12

Peeta's POV

The doors of the train opened to reveal the massive crowds waiting for me on the platform. I stepped onto it and instead of the usual cheers and applause that await the victor upon their return, everyone fell silent and I knew what they were all thinking about or rather, who they were thinking about. Katniss Everdeen. The girl on fire. No one seemed to be able to look at me or say anything. And then I saw them, Prim, her mother and of course, Gale. I quickly avoided their gazes not wanting to feel worse about myself.

To break the silence, I started in a dry voice 'Hello everybody, I know I'm not really what you were expecting. I…I…I know I'm to blame.' I shuddered as an image of Katniss's mangled body flashed through my mind. I opened my mouth but no sound came out because my throat was so dry.

Suddenly someone started to clap, slowly and in a matter of seconds the whole crowd was applauding. But were they applauding me or Katniss or the two of us? I didn't know. The train pulled out of the station and I gave a meek smile before turning my back to the crowd so I could hide the tears that were starting to fall from my eyes.

I wandered through the town. Nothing had changed, yet it seemed that everything was different. I stopped in front of the bakery and gazed through the window. The bakery was empty; my family was probably amidst the crowd still on the platform. I turned to start the walk up to the victor's village when a familiar face stopped me.

'Not keen on crowds son?' Haymitch questioned.

'No. At least, not anymore.' I answered.

'Do you miss her?'

'More than you could ever know'. And with that I left without another word.


	2. Chapter 2: Gale's visit

I unloaded my bags onto a marble table in the hall and looked around the house in the victor's village that I was assigned, number 17. I suppose that all the houses were the same so it didn't really matter. It happened to be the one right next to Haymitch's. The walls were quite bare and he could smell the disinfectant in the air which indicated that the house had only recently been cleaned. I guess since it had been here for about 75 years it had probably collected dust. The kitchen was square and one of its walls was covered by 2 large windows that showed the view of the back garden. I sighed and turned back to walk through the rest of the house. It was quite bare. The living room, which was right next to the kitchen, consisted of a few sofas and a TV.

I wandered upstairs and found the bedroom. I heaved my luggage onto the bed and started unpacking what little belongings I owned. I came across a beautiful picture of Katniss and I felt my heart twist itself so tight I couldn't breathe. Everytime I came across her face in my mind or in a photograph, my heart twisted like that. I let my thumb slide over her face slightly before setting it on the dresser and turning my back on that face that had appeared so many times in my dreams and nightmares.

A knock at the door extracted me from my thoughts. I rushed down the stairs to answer the door and my mouth fell open slightly at the sight of visitor. It was Gale.

'Hi Peeta. Look, I know you and I don't really know each other or get on well' he admitted.

'Hullo Gale. Um…what are you doing here?' I replied.

'Can I come in?' He asked abruptly.

'Sure,' I was suspicious but I wanted to know what he wanted so I opened the door and let him in.

We sat at the kitchen table and I opened 2 beers for him and I. Who knew that Victor Houses' fridges came fully stocked?

'So, you're about…' I swallowed slowly so as not to choke, 'Katniss.'

'Yes. I have questions that keep popping up inside my head, it's well…it's about what happened in the arena.'

There it was. The subject and place Peeta dreaded the most, the arena that haunted his nightmares.

'What about the arena?' I asked, even though I already knew the answer to the question.

'Well first of all, you and Catnip, sorry Katniss, was it real? Was it painful for you when she…you know…died? How did she die? What was it like?' Gale inquired; there was a pained look across his face. I always knew he had a thing for her.

'Didn't you watch it all on TV? Why do you need me to tell you?' I mumbled

'I did yes, but that was the Capitols point of view. I want to hear the story from someone who actually knew her and…well…loved her. And I figured you were the best for the job so, that's why I'm here' said Gale.

'I'll just tell you the whole story, from where she found me.' I told him.

So, with that I began to uncover what for the past week I'd been trying to bury.

*Flashback*

_I heard the familiar boom of the canon and hoped yet again that it wasn't Katniss. At the very thought of her name I felt warm inside. Even though I probably will never see her again (the giant gash in my leg prevented me from moving) I still couldn't stop thinking about her. I was well concealed under rocks and I had been able to camouflage my face well enough so it looked like the rock beside me itself, well almost. My piercing blue eyes were unnoticeable._

_I heard a second boom and my heart made a small back flip. I guess I would have to wait until nightfall to find out if she was still alive or not. I waited and waited, every movement sent a searing pain through my leg and up my spine. As soon as I heard the start of the Capitol anthem I turned my head to the sky and waited for when they would show the deceased. The boy from 1, the boy from 3 and…Rue. Poor little Rue, she was only thirteen after all. She didn't want any part in this. She was so young and so innocent. This only made me hate the Capitol even more. I settled back down, trying to get as comfortable as he could which wasn't very comfortable at all but it would have to do, and tried to fall asleep. _

_I managed to get atleast 4 hours of sleep before I heard the voice of Claudius Templesmith, the official announcer of the Games. He was making another announcement._

'_Tributes, a new rule has been installed. We would like to inform you that if two tributes from the same District remain, they may both be crowned victors. This will be my only announcement.'_

'_Katniss!' I muttered under my breath. I waited for what I assumed to be about 30 minutes. She didn't come, I guess I shouldn't have counted on it, I doubted she really cared for me._

_Then I heard it, footsteps, light on the ground but still audible. I tensed up and laid down so I was more concealed. The person rounded the corner of the rock and I relaxed when I saw the dark braid and the arrows. 'Katniss,' I whispered._

_She didn't look down, she hadn't yet noticed me._

'_Peeta, Peeta,' she whispered softly. 'Peeta, where are you?'_

_I reached out my arm when she was close enough and tugged on her shoe. She jumped slightly but her beautiful grey eye met mine and I couldn't help but smile._

'_Peeta, oh my god, I didn't see you, did you hear the announcement?' she crouched down and started to liberate me from all the rocks and stones I was under and she then lifted me up. My body tingled at her touch. _

'_Katniss, I'm so relieved you're alive.' I sighed._

'_Me too you. She leaned over to give me a quick hug. And that's when she noticed the cut that Cato left. _

A/N: The arena flashback won't be all the same as the book. First of all because it isn't my story, it's Suzanne Collins' story and second of all I don't remember all the details. So it will be a bit different but the basics will remain unchanged. I'm sorry if there are any mistakes, I'm only 15. I hope you enjoy, please review


	3. Chapter 3: The Flashback 2

Chapter 3: The Cave

**Hi! So I am on vacation right now I'll try to write as often as I can but I'm really sorry if I don't. I hope you enjoy this chapter, we're still in Peeta's flashback I know it's a little long, my apologies, anyway, I will stop talking and let you read chapter 3, enjoy! **

**In the previous Chapter:**

'_Peeta, Peeta,' she whispered softly. 'Peeta, where are you?'_

_I reached out my arm when she was close enough and tugged on her shoe. She jumped slightly but her beautiful grey eye met mine and I couldn't help but smile._

'_Peeta, oh my god, I didn't see you, did you hear the announcement?' she crouched down and started to liberate me from all the rocks and stones I was under and she then lifted me up. My body tingled at her touch. _

'_Katniss, I'm so relieved you're alive.' I sighed._

'_Me too you. She leaned over to give me a quick hug. And that's when she noticed the cut that Cato left. _

'_Who did this to you?' croaked Katniss. She wore on her face a look of hopelessness; her mouth hung open slightly._

'_Cato,' I groaned, trying to help myself up onto my forearms. 'It was after you got away, after I helped you get away. He came back; he was furious and slashed my leg with his sword.' _

'_Peeta…' she whimpered, not being able to speak for several minutes. Then she cleared her throat and composed her face. 'OK, so um let's see. I...I'm not gonna lie to you, I don't have much experience, Prim was always the one who helped mother.' She swallowed and then stepped over my body to the side of the gash. I heard her muttering to herself but I couldn't understand what she was saying. She reached out her hands shakily to the wound in an attempt to get a better look. It was infected though and puss was oozing out of it. _

_She turned away quickly, but I saw her shudder. _

'_Katniss, are you all right?' I asked. _

'_I…I'm fine.' She quivered._

'_You know you don't have to be brave for me, I know what state my leg is in, I know there is a high chance I won't make it' I said calmly. At those words her face became stern. _

'_Peeta Mellark, you are not going to die, not on my count anyhow.' She ordered._

'_But-' _

'_Not another word, so I'm a bit squeamish when it comes to injuries and I always leave the house whenever my mother has patients, but I am here for you and there is no one else so your just gonna have to deal with me and I don't want to hear another word!' She had started shouting towards the end._

'_Shhh!' I shushed. 'Keep your voice down!'_

_She went a bit red and answered in a calmer voice 'Oh, right. Anyway,' she started digging through her orange rucksack and found some water which she gave me to drink. 'You don't think you'll be able to climb up a tree any time soon? Because it's nearly nightfall and we can't sleep out here in the open or we won't make it 'till morning.' She asked me. _

'_I…no. I doubt it. But I'll try, for you' and I gave her my best 'wounded' smile. It worked, she cracked and I saw a hint of a grin play across her lips. I loved her lips, so smooth and well rounded. To be honest I loved everything about her. The way she was bossy with the people she loved the most, the way her hair flowed in the wind and her fierceness was what I found most attractive about her. I felt a sudden urge to kiss her and our eyes met briefly I swear that she was thinking the same thing but then her eyes darted back to my wound and she said 'No, I was silly to think you would be able to. Can you stand? We'll try and find a hidden spot or something.'_

'_Yeah I can stand, as long as your there to catch me' I murmured._

_Her eyes bore into mine, but not in a harsh way, more of a steady way. 'Always' she answered, her gaze unfaltering._

_I smiled briefly while she helped me up. We made our way through the forest until I spotted a cave._

'_Katniss, _what_ about here?' I wondered. She looked at me unsurely. Ok, so it wasn't very concealed, I could see no other option of where we could spend the night._

'_I'm not sure,' she said. 'It doesn't look too safe.'_

'_Please Katniss, I don't think we have any other options.' I begged._

_She glanced at the cave and then at me, I was barely holding up 'Ok Peeta, well have to conceal the entrance though. _

_About a half an hour later, Katniss had laid me down on the cave floor on top of her sleeping bag and had successfully hid the entrance from view. She came and knelt by my side. _

'_We need to get you some medicine.' She said. She had already applied some of her own but it had been for a different purpose so it didn't help much but it did a bit. _

'_You know, in a way, for me, my name being called on Reaping Day was a stroke of luck.' I whispered_

_She stared at me intently. 'How do you mean?' _

'_It meant I got to spend time with you. Katniss, what I said to the whole of Panem in my interview with Caesar, it wasn't a lie. I loved you ever since we we're 5. It was the first day of school and you were wearing a red and white plaid dress. Your hair was in two braids instead of one and my dad said to me "Do you see that girl over there? I wanted to marry her mother but she married a coalminer instead" I asked him why she married a coalminer when she could have had him and he replied "Because when he sings even the birds fall silent with awe" and in assembly that very same day the teacher asked "Who knows the valley song?" and your hand shot straight up into the air. When you had finished, I knew, that like your mother, I was a goner.' I took a deep breath and looked into her eyes._

_She, however, remained silent. I couldn't tell if she was about to laugh or burst into tears. But, instead what she did took me completely by surprise. She leaned over and put her hand on my chest and pressed her lips against mine. It was a very light kiss, not really anything special but it felt so special to me. When she came pulled back her eyes were shining like stars in the dim cave. She smiled at me._

'_What was that for?' I asked breathlessly._

'_It was my way of saying thank you.' Suddenly, her head whipped around as if she had heard something. And then I heard it, a quiet beeping sound. She grabbed her arrow and before I could stop her ran up to the mouth of the cave. _

_It seemed like an eternity before she finally came back holding a metal parachute._

'_Is it medicine?' I asked._

'_No, it's soup' She answered there was something strange in her voice as if she knew something I didn't but I let it go._

_We spent another day or two in the cave, I found it was getting harder and harder to move. Katniss, it seemed was getting really protective and intimate. She kept giving me kisses and made sure I didn't do anything to hurt myself. I figured it was for show but for some carless reason I kept forgetting we were in the games. It seemed to be just me and her and the cave. Of course every time I let my mind wander that far, he had to quickly stop myself because of course, we were still in the games and there were still I think 6 tributes left including us and what me and Katniss had I could never be sure if it was real or not. A voice snapped me out of my thoughts. It was Claudius Templesmith again._

'_**Tributes, tomorrow evening there will be a feast at sundown. This will be no ordinary feast for each of you needs something, badly. There will be a bag with your District's number on it, there is one for each of you. Good Luck.'**_

_**A/N: Sorry if this chapter is a little long; please review if you like it. I know I made the cave scene a little more like the movie I haven't read the book in a while so I don't remember it as well, I'm sorry I'll try making it more like the book for the kiss. Hope everyone had a nice weekend **_


	4. Chapter 4: The Fall of Katniss Everdeen

_Chapter 4: Fallen Tribute_

**Sorry if I've taken some words exactly from the book. I changed it as much as I could. I am not Suzanne Collins and I do not own the Hunger Games.**

_Katniss stood up to leave but I stopped her._

'_Where are you going?' I asked innocently._

'_To get you your medicine, what do you think I'm doing?' She replied._

'_No, Katniss you're not going. Cato and Clove will be there and I'm not going to let you risk your life for me.' I whimpered._

'_Fine, I'm not going ok?' She said firmly_

'_You are such a bad liar Katniss, never try to gamble you'll lose everything.' I say. I'm not trying to be harsh but I'm worried if she leaves I'll never see her again._

_I look into her eyes and I think if looks could kill, I would be a dead man._

'_OK. You know what? I am going and you can't stop me!' she exclaimed._

'_Then I'm coming with you.' _

'_You won't make it 100 metres on that leg, Peeta.' She whispered. 'Peeta, what do you want me to do? Sit here and watch you die?'_

'_Please don't go,' I pleaded. 'If I promise not to die, will you promise not to go?'_

'_Fine, but only if you listen to me when I tell you to eat or take your medicine. I'm going to go make you some soup.' She said and without another word she was gone before I could stop her._

_It seemed an excruciatingly long time before Katniss reappeared. She was carrying the tin the broth had come in. 'I found something better than soup,' she said sweetly._

'_What is it?' I asked._

'_Some berries, they are called sugar berries.' _

_She gave me a spoonful of the mash. It certainly was unnaturally sweet._

'_I've never heard of them before.' I said._

'_Oh, they are pretty rare. I've only seen them a few times.' She said evasively._

'_They taste sweet...like syrup!' I exclaimed as it dawned on me what was really in the mash. Sleeping syrup but it was too late I could already feel the drowsiness overcome me despite my efforts to stay awake. Next thing I knew, I was out cold. _

_*End of Flashback*_

'That's all very nice.' Said Gale 'But I want to know about her death, not about the whole 'star-crossed lover' thing'

'You know, you're lucky I had the patience to do this today. I don't care that you're jealous. Those are your issues not mine. Are you going to let me finish or not?'

'You seriously think that _I'm _jealous of _you?_' Then biting his lip he said. 'I'm sorry that was harsh I didn't mean it like that it's just that this is hard for me…'

That's when I completely lost it. I slammed my fist on the table. 'YOU DON'T THINK THAT THIS HARD FOR ME ASWELL?' I yelled. 'I was in the Games as well and it's not just the fact that Katniss is…it's also the Games…it does something to a person's soul.'

'I'm sorry,' was all he could say. I didn't know if I could continue the story but I knew I had to, I knew Katniss would have wanted me too.

*_Flashback*_

_That's when I felt his arms close around my throat._

'_Katniss!' I gasped._

_She didn't take her eyes off me though her arrow was pointed straight at Cato's head. _

_As it was getting harder and harder to breathe, I had an idea. I looked Katniss directly in the eye and then drew an 'X' on Cato's hand with my finger. She caught on about 2 seconds before Cato luckily and swiftly shot the arrow right through this fist and then we watched as he quickly fell into the arms of the mutts, the one resembling Clove pounced on his face and the rest followed._

_I turned to face Katniss and she came into my arms, my leg was in excruciating pain from the bite that one of the mutts had given me. _

_We waited in silence during the bitter night while the animals devoured Cato, his whimpering was heard throughout the entire night. _

_Suddenly the mutts all deserted Cato and soon after we heard the boom of the cannon. Cato was dead and Katniss and I would be able to go home, together. _

_We jumped off the Cornucopia and waited for the hovercraft to come and get us. But no one came. My stomach started to fill with dread, something was off._

_Then we heard Claudius Templesmith's booming voice and my suspicions were confirmed._

'_We are sorry to announce that the previous rule allowing 2 victors to be crowned has been revoked. Only one tribute may be crowned victor. Good luck and may the odds be forever in your favor.'_

_I looked at Katniss with desperation. I took out my knife and she suddenly loaded an arrow onto her bow._

_But I had only taken my knife out to drop it into the lake. She looked really embarrassed but I only said 'Go ahead, do it. There can only be one victor after all.'_

_But she dropped her bow, and reached for something in her pack. She took out the little pouch which I already knew the contents of, Nightlock._

'_What are you doing?' I asked worriedly._

'_Trust me,' she said._

_She poured half into my hand, the other half into her own._

'_Together,' she said. 'On the count of three.' _

'_Together.' I repeated._

_With that we both tilted our heads back and I watched as the berries rolled down my palm._

'_STOP! STOP!' Claudius shouted. I quickly spat out the berries but for Katniss, it was too late. Her eyes swarmed with panic, she reached for my hand before falling down on the floor, dead._

_*End of flashback*_

Gale was looking at me, awestruck. I wiped away the tears from my eyes and stood up to bring my beer can to the waste bin 

'That was way worse than watching it on TV he said,'

I chuckled a little. 'Yeah, I can imagine.' I sniffled.

'I'm sorry. I know you really wanted to forget about everything.'

'No, I would never want to forget about Katniss. I don't know if it was real for her or not. But for me it was, and I don't want to ever forget about her. The Games yes, but not Katniss.' I mumbled while running my fingers through my hair.

'Yeah, I understand' he said. 'Thanks for the beer and the story,'

'Anytime.' I replied.

'So I have to get going but if you ever need anything, you know where to find me.' And with that, he left.

I got up from the table and went back to the bedroom and fell asleep almost immediately after my head hit the pillow.

**A/N: I hope this chapter wasn't too long. Please review if you enjoyed, I love reading them. I know I haven't updated in a while. I was making fixes and I've been really busy but I'm trying **


	5. Chapter 5: A Person to Comfort

Chapter 5

**A/N I'm terribly sorry for not having updated sooner. I've been a bit in a rut, not knowing what to write and such. I came up with this and I hope it's ok, please review Enjoy!**

_I'm running through the woods, I can still see her long brown hair bouncing in the wind._

'_Katniss, wait!' I call._

_She turns around and I see her face smile at me. We come out of the forest and I can see her running towards the edge of a cliff._

'_Katniss, stop! You're going too fast, you'll fall!' _

_But she isn't listening to me and before I have the time to say her name she runs off the edge of the cliff. I keep running until I'm almost at the edge. I look over but I don't see anything. Only darkness. I tip my head forward a little and suddenly I feel a jolt of electricity surge through my entire body._

As I open my eyes again I am lying in my bed completely drenched in sweat. It was only a nightmare. One of the many he had every night. All of them about Katniss.

I got up and went over to the bathroom where I filled up a glass of water and drank it all. I walked back over to the room to check the time. 4.18.

After about another half an hour, I decided there was no use trying to get back to sleep so I decided to get dressed and go over to the bakery to visit my family. They would probably already be up anyways.

As I walked out of the house however, I saw that I wasn't the only one suffering from insomnia. Haymitch's lights were on as well. I decided to go and get some bread and then I could go over to check on Haymitch who was no doubt already drunk.

'Hi Mother,' I called as I opened the door of the bakery.

'Hello Peeta, would you like something to eat?' she asked me. She was smiling which wasn't really something that she did so I took it as a good sign.

'Yes please, could I just have three loaves of bread?' as she turned around to get them something occurred to me and I felt selfish for not having mentioned it before. 'Mother, you do know that you don't have to stay here. I mean, you can come live with me in the house. It is a little lonely and I'm sure you don't like staying here…I mean…only if you want…'

'Well Peeta, thanks for the offer. I'll have to talk to your father about it but I'm sure your brothers would be more than willing to go though.'

'Ok, well, whatever you decide,' I mumbled.

I took the loaves and headed back outside into the cold. I pocketed one of the loaves and wrapped the other ones in individual pieces of newspaper my mother had given me. I walked down towards the Seam not fully aware of what I was doing but knowing it was the right thing to do. I stopped in front of her house and knocked. A pale little girl with bright blue eyes and golden hair opened the door. She looked so unlike Katniss but the sight of her gave his heart a wrench anyway.

'Hello Prim,' I said to her. She looked quite shocked to see me but let me in quite the same.

'So, you're Peeta.' She said flatly.

'That's me.' I said. 'I…I have something for you.' And I held out the bundle of warm bread and handed it to her. Her eyes grew round and I could tell she was hungry. 'I have this for you as well. It should have been for Katniss and I want you to at least have some part of it.' He handed her a bag of gold, enough to last her the year he assumed.

He could see her eyes fill up with tears and wondered for a moment if he had made the wrong choice.

'Th-thank you,' she mumbled finally through her tears. 'I'm s-s-sorry I know th-this m-m-must be h-hard for y-you t-t-too and,'

'It's ok, you were her family and you have the right to be upset. I'm sorry if I have upset you, here have some bread.'

She took a mouthful and chewed it slowly, then, slowly, she started to eat faster until the whole loaf was gone.

'I should have saved some for mother,' she cried. 'She hasn't been eating much. She will be glad you stopped by though and I will give her this money. You are a very brave man Peeta, I know you miss my sister too and I know that she loved you very much.'

'You know Prim,' I couldn't help myself from chuckling 'You're pretty wise for a girl your age. You are just as brave as Katniss was from what she's told me. And I know for a fact that she loved you more than anything in this world,'

She reached over and put her arms around me. I rested my hand behind her little blonde head as she sobbed into my jacket. 'It'll get better, I promise. You have Gale, don't you? He will make sure you never starve.'

She pulled away, 'Yes, we do have Gale, thank you Peeta, for everything. Goodbye.'

And with that she turned aroud and ran upstairs leaving the gold on the table and me feeling a little bit better than I had this morning. So, I left the house and made my way back up towards the Victor's Village. It was gradually starting to get lighter. I walked up the pathway to Haymitch's house and decided to open the door without knocking, Haymitch would most likely not remember the next day anyhow.

But what I saw made me feel like I had just been punched in the stomach. Haymitch was lying motionless on the floor a glass of whatever spirit smashed to the floor. He didn't look passed out from the drinking though. By the looks of it, it had been the first one of the day. I ran over to him.

'Haymitch!' I called. 'Haymitch'

**Sorry for the cliffhanger, I'll update it as soon as possible xx**


	6. Chapter 6: The Mentor & The Angry

"Look, Peeta, I'm fine. Just had a rough night s'all. Calm yourself."

"Haymitch, you're not fine."

I had run into the house and discovered him lying unconscious in a pile of shattered glass and his own sick. I told myself I shouldn't worry because this wasn't uncommon for Haymitch but I knew I couldn't just leave him lying like that.

"I was only gone for...for...15 minutes...or so."

"But look, you've cut you're hand on a piece of glass, I'll call someone to come get it looked at. In the meantime let me take you upstairs to you're bed."

He was too week to protest so I picked him up and brought him the stairs.

Once the nurse had come and gone and he could sit up, I decided to ask him what happened.

"It was a rough night. I told you, boy." He panted.

"That makes two of us."

We sat and talked for a little while longer before I got up to leave.

"I'll be back tomorrow with some food." I said.

He nodded as I walked out the door and slid into my coat. Once outside, I walked down his driveway and up my own. The Victor's village. I hated even the mere name of it. I made a mental note to tell Mother that I would move back home but then decided against it because that would leave Haymitch alone. I knew that I wasn't really the one he wanted to see, but I was the only one left.

_I roll my eyes at Haymitch. "She has no idea. The effect she can have." I say._

I brushed the thought away. It hurts, I can't even describe it. I wished so badly to be dead right now instead of her. I-

"Peeta!"

I turned around to see who was calling me.

"What do you want?" I asked

"Prim told me you payed her a visit the other day," said Gale

"Yeah, I did."

"You've already given that family enough trouble. Don't you think they'd be better off without you?" He snarled.

"Look, I just went over there to apologize. And they were really understanding. They said they didn't blame me for what happened, that it really wasn't my fault anyways. I still feel like it is though, survivors guilt you could say. I really enjoyed talking to Prim and I think it really would help the both of us to be friends. I just want everything to go back to normal. It won't, ever, but I can still try. And you're letting you're feelings for Katniss take over your life because I know you're not a bad guy. You're just really traumatized, and I get that. But stop telling me what I should or shouldn't be doing. See you around"

"My f-f-feelings for K-" he stuttered.

"Don't even try to deny it. Even if you didn't love her, you'd have to be a fool not to."

I turned my back on him and continued my hike up the hill to the over my shoulder I saw Gale still standing there awstruck before shaking his head and turning his back, hands in his pockets.


End file.
